Home Office

Security Update

Baroness Williams of Trafford: My rt hon Friend the Secretary of State for the Home Department (Priti Patel) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement:The Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC) has reduced the UK national terrorism threat level from SEVERE to SUBSTANTIAL. This means that a terrorist attack in the UK is likely. JTAC previously raised the UK National Threat Level from SUBSTANTIAL to SEVERE following two terrorist attacks in the UK in quick succession, in October and November 2021. When the threat level is at SEVERE it means an attack is highly likely. JTAC judges that, despite these two attacks, the current nature and scale of the UK terrorist threat is consistent with the level of threat seen prior to the attacks. The attacks in October and November 2021 reflect the complex, volatile, and unpredictable nature of the terrorist threat in the UK.The decision to change the UK terrorism threat level is taken by JTAC independently of Ministers. JTAC keep the threat level under constant review based on the very latest intelligence and analysis of internal and external factors which drive the threat.Any reduction in the threat level is positive but it must never make us complacent. Terrorism remains one of the most direct and immediate risks to our national security. The public should remain alert, but not alarmed, and report any concerns they may have to the Police.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Project Gigabit Winter Update

Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay: I am repeating the following Written Ministerial Statement made today in the other place by my Honourable Friend, the Minister for Media, Data, and Digital Infrastructure, Julia Lopez MP:Today we have published the fourth Project Gigabit quarterly update. Thanks to the work of industry and our record investment, we are making phenomenal progress delivering the biggest broadband rollout in UK history.In this Project Gigabit Delivery Plan Winter Update, we share the news that over 65% of UK premises now have a gigabit-capable connection - a huge leap forwards from just over one in twenty in January 2019.This delivery plan update also reports on:newly launched Regional Supplier procurements in Cambridgeshire and the North East of England, as well as Local Supplier procurements in rural Dorset, North Northumberland and Teesdale;16 local and devolved authorities which currently have live schemes to top-up our voucher projects worth £10.5m;details of upcoming procurements in Cornwall, Norfolk, Suffolk, Hampshire and Shropshire; andupdates on how we are working closely with the devolved governments to develop and deliver Project Gigabit plans in some of the hardest-to-reach areas in the UK.Since the launch of Project Gigabit in April 2021, we have connected over 3,500 public sector building hubs: places like Borrowdale Primary School in Cumbria, which is now able to take full advantage of online learning while also speeding up connections to surrounding homes and businesses. We expect to connect a further 100 hubs over the next quarter.To support this phenomenal progress, Building Digital UK (BDUK) will become an Executive Agency of DCMS. BDUK will be based at a new head office in central Manchester, boosting the city’s credentials as a fast-growing digital tech hub.This Government is supporting access to the internet of the future - building broadband that is fast, reliable and future-proof, that supports 5G, and that paves the way for new and unexpected developments in commerce, trade and technology.I will place a copy of the Project Gigabit Delivery Plan Winter Update in the Libraries of both Houses.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Business Update

Lord Callanan: My Right Honourable friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Kwasi Kwarteng) has today made the following statement:Since 2014 the Contracts for Difference scheme has been at the heart of our efforts to diversify and decarbonise our power system. Since 2010 we have increased the percentage of power generated from renewables from 7% to 43%, creating thousands of high-skilled jobs and bringing new industries to our former industrial heartlands.To date Contracts for Difference has awarded contracts totalling almost 16GW of new renewable electricity capacity across multiple technologies. Since the first competitive allocation round (AR1), it has contributed to a more than 60% reduction in the per unit price of offshore wind, with substantial benefits for consumers. We opened our latest allocation round (AR4) on 13 December 2021. It is our largest yet, with an ambition to procure more new generating capacity than the last three rounds combined.We want to further accelerate our low carbon power generation, making the UK less reliant on volatile fossil fuels and creating more home-grown power. This will help us to deliver a fully decarbonised electricity system by 2035.To do this we set out an ambition to accelerate the deployment of low-cost renewable generation by undertaking a review of the frequency of the Contracts for Difference allocation rounds. The review of allocation round frequency has now concluded.I have decided to increase the frequency of the allocation rounds to every year, from around every two years as it is currently. The next allocation round, AR5, will be brought forward to March 2023 and it is our intention that the subsequent allocation rounds will be held every 12 months in the following years.In parallel, we have recently opened a consultation on changes to make AR5 more effective and forward-looking, particularly on the application process for Supply Chain Plans.Our review suggests that the move to more frequent Contracts for Difference allocation rounds is overwhelmingly supported by industry. Increasing the frequency of allocation rounds will help to encourage low carbon electricity generation, which may also encourage investment in supply chains, and benefit the UK in the longer term not least by protecting consumers from potentially volatile global markets.These more frequent rounds will also support the delivery of those renewable technologies, such as onshore wind, offshore wind, and solar PV, which are key to decarbonising the power sector, creating jobs and bringing even more investment to our former industrial heartlands. This will sit alongside the Government’s commitment to bring forward another large-scale nuclear power plant this Parliament.The Contracts for Difference scheme has been successful in deploying low carbon generation and reducing the cost of capital for renewable technologies. As more renewables are added to the system, we will continue to consider how the scheme could evolve over the longer term to ensure it reflects the impact of renewables on the wider system, including total system costs.

Attorney General

Independent Review into the Serious Fraud Office’s handling of the Unaoil case

Lord Stewart of Dirleton: My Right Honourable Friend the Attorney General for England and Wales (Suella Braverman QC MP) has today made the following Written Ministerial Statement: I wish to provide details of an independent review I have commissioned into the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) failings identified by the Court of Appeal in the case of R. v Akle & Anor [2021].This case, investigated and prosecuted by the SFO between 2016 and 2021, resulted in criticism by the Court of the way in which the SFO engaged with third parties and handled disclosure. On receiving the judgment, it was clear to me that swift action was needed to identify how these issues arose and what changes are needed to ensure they are not repeated.I have appointed Sir David Calvert-Smith to lead this review. Sir David is a former Director of Public Prosecutions and High Court judge who has led several independent reviews and has significant experience relevant to the issues raised. Sir David will consider and provide recommendations in relation to the following matters:A. What happened in this case and why. In particular, the review should assess the two key failings identified in the judgment:what occurred as regards SFO contact with third-parties and why; andwhy did the SFO disclosure failures identified in the Court of Appeal judgment occur?B. What implications, if any, do the failings highlighted by this case have for the policies, practices, procedures and related culture of the SFO?C. What changes are necessary to address the failings highlighted by the judgment and any wider issues of SFO policies, practices, procedures or related culture identified by the reviewer? Sir David will have the support of a small team including the Deputy Chief Inspector of Her Majesty's Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate, Anthony Rogers. Sir David will aim to report to me by the end of May 2022 and I will then provide a further update to Parliament on his findings and my response to them.The Government is determined to make the UK a hostile environment for all forms of economic crime. It is a priority for me to ensure effective sponsorship of the SFO, which includes supporting and holding the Director to account, as well as safeguarding the SFO’s independence to investigate and prosecute crime.